Ride Across Britain Day 1: Climb, climb and climb some more...

Karl Holbrook

Any thoughts that this might be a holiday are well and truly banished now.

107 miles in the bank. 870 to go. (But let's not get ahead of ourselves).

A welcome sight

Today's inaugural stage of The Deloitte Ride Across Britain saw us climb, climb and climb some more from the edge of England to Oakehampton in Devon.

It was tough (more than 8,000ft of climbs) to contend with.

But my biggest enemy: sitting on the hateful saddle for the best part of nine hours. (The less said about that the better).

The variety of riders has been staggering. I've met first timers who have taken on the challenge after losing a shed load of weight and I've met super fit ex pros equally knocked out by this legendary challenge to ride a bike from end to very end.

But the hero of the day, for me, has got to be Karen Farnan, from Bamber Bridge, who completed her biggest ever ride today and her first over 100 miles.

She chose an epic first century and she smashed it.

Here's looking forward to finding some more heroes on tomorrow's 'lumpy' stage from Oakehampton to Bath.